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Plague Inc.

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Plague Inc.
App Store icon
Developer(s)Ndemic Creations
Platform(s)iOS
Android
Microsoft Windows
OS X
ReleaseiOS
May 26, 2012
Android
October 4, 2012
Microsoft Windows and OS X
February 20, 2014
Genre(s)Strategy, simulation
Mode(s)Single-player

Plague Inc. is an iOS, Android , PC and Xbox One strategy video game, developed by one-man developer Ndemic Creations. (In the case of the Xbox One and PC it has been dubbed Plague Inc:Evolved.) The player creates and evolves a pathogen in an effort to destroy the world with a deadly plague. The game uses an epidemic model with a complex and realistic set of variables to simulate the spread and severity of the plague.

It has been downloaded over 25 million times[1][2] and was a runner up in the IGN Game of the Year 2012 awards for 'Overall Best Strategy Game'.[3] Overall, it was the 15th most downloaded paid iPhone game of 2012 in the U.S.[4] and the 5th most downloaded paid iPhone game of 2013 in the U.S.[5] In February 2014, Ndemic Creations released Plague Inc: Evolved, for PC, Mac and Linux onto Steam.[6] The game continues to have a active community and guides have been made for the game. [7]

Gameplay

Plague Inc. is a strategy-simulation game in which the player controls a plague which has infected patient zero. The player must choose between various plagues and viruses, and infect and kill the whole world population by evolving the plague and adapting to various environments. However, there is a time pressure to complete the game before humans, the opponent, develop a cure for the plague.[8]. The exception this this rule is the games version of a zombie plague in which if you evolve the symptom cypopathic reanimation it will elinmate the chance that the cure will effect anything except for high score.

The developer has said it is "a bit like the film Contagion except you are on the other side".[9] The game was inspired by Pandemic 2, a browser-based Flash game released in 2008 by Dark Realm Studios.[10]

Development

Release

Since the launch on May 26, 2012, a number of updates (called 'Mutations' by the developer) have been released:

  • 1.0 (May 2012)- Original version of the game.
  • 1.1 (June 2012) - added iPad support - making game universal[11]
  • 1.2 (June 2012) - added Accelerated Unlock (IAP) & iCloud support[12]
  • 1.3 (August 2012) - added Neurax Worm plague type[13]
  • 1.4 (October 2012) - added genetic modification ability[14]
  • 1.5 (February 2013) - added Necroa Virus plague type [15]
  • 1.6 (July 2013) - added Speed Runs and official CDC content [16]
  • 1.7 (November 2013) - added Scenarios including real life diseases and altered world states [17]
  • 1.8 (April 2014) - added Mega Brutal difficulty, 4 new scenarios and 3 new cheats [18]
  • 1.9 (Unknown Release Date) - Will add a yet unknown disease type and more features to the game.

Xbox One Release

The game is currently being expanded to the Xbox One console.

Centers for Disease Control and Prevention appearance

In March 2013, James Vaughan, the developer of Plague Inc., was invited to talk at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) about Plague Inc.[19] He spoke about how he had modeled the spread of infectious disease inside the game as well as how games like Plague Inc. can be used to inform and educate the public.

Following the talk, the CDC said that it was interested in Plague Inc. as "it uses a non-traditional route to raise public awareness on epidemiology, disease transmission, and diseases/pandemic information. The game creates a compelling world that engages the public on serious public health topics".[20]

In Plague Inc

In the game the CDC gives update on their version of a news banner and some achievements such as Patient Who has the CDC hunting the patent zero.

Reception

Critical Reception

Wired.com considered Plague Inc. as a notable independent developer success story as it "bucked the system by staying near the top of the charts in numerous countries for the entirety of its existence, pulling in millions in revenue while competing with the big players".[1] It was #1 paid app for both iPhone and iPad in the U.S. for two weeks after launch [21] IGN said that "Killing billions has never been so fun".[22] Toucharcade said that "Plague Inc. will snag your attention in all the right ways and keep it there"[23] In December 2012, Plague Inc. was one of five games nominated for Best Strategy Game in IGN's Game of the Year 2012, both for mobile and for all platforms. It also won the 'Players Choice' award for best Mobile Strategy Game of 2012.[3] Overall, Plague Inc. was the 15th most downloaded paid iPhone game of 2012 in the U.S. (and 18th on iPad). It was also the 76th highest grossing game of 2012.[4] In March 2013, the game went on to win multiple categories of the Pocket Gamer Awards, including Overall Game of the Year.[24] It was the 5th most downloaded paid iPhone game in the US in 2013.[5]

Player Reception

The game currently has a user reception of 7.6 on Metacritic and a 8.1 from the community on IGN. The game for the most part has had a positive reception and many guides have been made such as a website called Yo It's Spicy that has a guide for the game. [25]

References

  1. ^ a b How to Get Rich Simulating the Deaths of Billions of People | Game|Life | Wired.com
  2. ^ [1]
  3. ^ a b Best Overall Strategy Game - Best of 2012 - IGN
  4. ^ a b Best of 2012 - Apple
  5. ^ a b Best of 2013 - Apple
  6. ^ "Plague Inc: Evolved hits Steam Early Access tomorrow". Retrieved 2014-02-22.
  7. ^ http://icspicy.blogspot.com
  8. ^ "Plague Inc. app review". apppicker.com.
  9. ^ Ed Tech Crew 211 - Interview with James Vaughan creator of Plague Inc | Ed Tech Crew
  10. ^ Cloning vs. Evolution: Pandemic mutates into Plague Inc. - Hookshot Inc.
  11. ^ Mutation Alert! Plague Inc. 1.1 Update live - Ndemic Creations
  12. ^ Plague Inc. Mutation Update 1.2 Will Add More Disease Combos, iCloud Support - Modojo: Handheld and Mobile Reviews, Previews, Cheats, News, Games, and More
  13. ^ 'Plague Inc' Set to Get Brain-burrowing Worm Plague and Much More in Next Update | Touch Arcade
  14. ^ Latest 'Plague Inc' Update Adds Genetic Mutations | Touch Arcade
  15. ^ 'Plague Inc' Necroa Virus Update Now Available | Touch Arcade
  16. ^ New Update To 'Plague Inc.' Will Add Speed Run Mode, Also CDC Content | Touch Arcade
  17. ^ [2]
  18. ^ 'Mega' Mutation 1.8 goes live! - Ndemic Creations
  19. ^ Plague Inc. creator to speak at CDC
  20. ^ CDC thoughts on Plague Inc
  21. ^ Gamasutra - News - Top iPhone game apps: Plague Inc, Catapult King head up paid charts
  22. ^ Plague Inc. Review - IGN
  23. ^ Plague Inc Review | Touch Arcade
  24. ^ http://www.pocketgamer.co.uk/pgawards2013
  25. ^ http://icspicy.blogspot.com
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